As you know if you’ve been reading Twitchy today and our posts about CNN’s Brian Stelter, the ones to follow in the Jussie Smollett case are the local reporters on the ground in Chicago keeping in touch daily with the Chicago Police Department.

One of those reporters is CBS Chicago’s Charlie De Mar, whom you might remember as the guy who tweeted the photos from the raid on the Osundairo brothers’ apartment.

De Mar has a new piece out citing multiple sources who suggest a motive for the alleged attack on Smollett:

“Empire” actor Jussie Smollett, upset after a racist letter sent to the show’s studio didn’t get a “bigger reaction,” is suspected of paying two men to attack him a week later, according to multiple sources with direct knowledge of the investigation.

The blockbuster revelation into at least part of Smollett’s potential motive comes two days after CBS 2’s Charlie De Mar reported Smollett and two brothers — Ola and Abel Osundairo — staged the attack on Jan. 29 in Streeterville.

Two brothers with whom he had a working relationship on “Empire,” no less.

Awesome reporting thank you for tying up all of the dangling ends. As an investigative journalist myself I cannot thank you enough for taking the time asking the hard questions and helping piece this together

Totally reasonable response: Stage an attack and then agree to testify against two men apprehended until he found out they were his coconspirators and not random innocent Trump supporters that fit the description.

That’s the worst part. It’s bad enough that he staged an attack on himself in order to paint Trump supporters as racists and bigots, he was actually willing to ruin lives of two innocent men for that. And he also made sure people will be less likely to believe actual victims.